COVID Tired

I’m not sure if I’ve had COVID, but I strongly suspect I got it around late-April/early-May in 2020 at the beginning of the pandemic. I ended up sick for a couple weeks in a time where testing wasn’t available, and then recovered.

Ever since then, I’ve had less energy than before. It’s affected my life in a major way and made it hard to do side projects, enjoy going outside or really doing anything. Before the pandemic I would get up early, drive to work, work my 8.5 hour day, drive home and work on projects like HAM radio, photography, urban exploring or even knitting and crafts.

Post-COVID, I roll out of bed half an hour before my first meeting, work through my day, and when 5 comes I can barely keep awake. I find myself needing a nap or spending the evening half asleep. I have had barely enough energy to do my job, and none extra. Now, almost a year later, this is just now starting to get better.

I have friends also going through shades of this same experience. COVID long-hauler syndrome is a very real thing, and I feel like it’s going to affect me for years to come. Whenever I see people feeling like it’s OK if people under 55 get COVID because they’re likely to survive, it makes me angry. Just because you survive doesn’t mean you life is severely and meaningfully altered.

When I saw I HATE EVERYTHING’s excellent I HATE ANXIETY 2020 video, it spoke to me a lot and I think really sums up the effect this is having on people well. If you’ve not yet, I recommend watching it.